A typical excavator housing positioning system includes a hydraulic motor that rotates a gear assembly associated with a swing gear train, which in turn, rotates the housing. A closed loop control system may be used to position the excavator housing to a desired position. In application, an operator rotates the excavator housing to a desired position by accelerating the housing from a start position and decelerating the housing prior to reaching the desired position. However, the inertial forces created by a rotating housing with a varying load make it difficult, even for the expert operator, to accurately rotate the housing to a desired position. In particular, once the excavator begins rotational motion, the inertia caused by the rotation typically causes the housing to overshoot the desired position. This problem is further exacerbated when the excavator is working on a hill side or the work implement of the excavator is carrying a full load.
Moreover, with the development of automated controls that regulate the dig and dump cycle of the excavator, a method is needed to monitor the inertial forces present during the rotational motion of the excavator in order to compensate for the inertial forces to accurately control the rotation. Unfortunately, directly monitoring inertial forces requires the use of several sensors, which add to the cost of the machine.
The present invention is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.